


Home is where you are

by FhimeChan



Series: The Yellow Portal [3]
Category: Clash of the Titans (2010), Ella Enchanted (2004), Hannibal (TV), Hannibal Extended Universe - Fandom
Genre: Clash Enchanted, Crack, Epilogue, Hanbal the scorpion, Hannigram - Freeform, Just tooth-rotting fluff, M/M, Post TWOTL, no plot here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-11-13 18:17:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11190654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FhimeChan/pseuds/FhimeChan
Summary: Hanbal the scorpion makes one last appearance at Will and Hannibal’s house.Epilogue for “probably a dog”.





	Home is where you are

**Author's Note:**

> Gently beta’ed by [@CostumesofHannibal](http://costumesofhannibal.tumblr.com/) and [@j9-j9](https://j9-j9.tumblr.com/). Thank you so much!  
> All the remaining mistakes are mine.

It was early in the morning when Hannibal jerked awake, his first instinct to protect the man asleep at his side. Except, no one was there. Hannibal would have panicked, if his brain had not registered the smell of bacon and burnt eggs. On any another occasion, the surprise would have pleased him enough not to mention Will ruining the food, _again_.

But this time his attention was focused on the brilliant yellow circle of light that had woken him up and morphed into something that was being laid on his lap. The thing became more definite as it slowly assumed the shape of a scorpion. A very big, armored and stinging scorpion.

Hannibal went suddenly very still, all the sleep sucked away by a rush of adrenalin. He was only wearing his boxers, and his inseparable knife was on the opposite bedside table, because somehow Hannibal had rolled onto Will’s part of the bed. He had to admit that maybe Will had a point when he accused Hannibal of pushing him on the floor.

His only possibility was to use his hands. But the skin of the scorpion had a metallic glint that was definitely not promising, and he was unable to spot any weak points, even if the animal was still. But maybe if he could catch the sting and use it to throw the scorpion at the wall, he could have enough time to pick up the knife and then properly attack.

He was ready to spur into action when he heard steps approaching. _Will_. He could not risk him to be involved in the fight, but he could not yell to warn him, or he would probably provoke the scorpion into stinging him, and it seemed poisonous.

As Will came nearer, Hannibal realized that it was his last chance to take advantage of the animal’s stillness, and started to move again. At the same time the scorpion _yawned_ and rolled to find a better position. The movement was very familiar, he had seen Winston do the same thing a million of times, and that was reason enough to freeze on the spot.

And so, Hannibal hesitated for a moment too long, and then the door opened.  Hannibal resumed his movement to catch the scorpion, because even if he was behaving like his husband’s beloved pet, he could not allow it to harm Will. Will entered the room with a tray full of food, just to let it drop on the floor when he saw the situation. The scorpion heard the noise and turned to face Will, waving his tail in greeting.

In that moment, Hannibal could see Will’s expression changing from happy to _radiant_ , which would have been very confusing, if he had not also yelled “HANBAL!!!” and had not thrown himself on the bed to pet the goddamned scorpion. In fact, it was not only confusing, it was complete madness. Had Will forgotten his name? Well, it was clear that he would be useless in a fight and that it was up to Hannibal to protect them both.

Exploiting the scorpion’s distraction, he discreetly reached for his knife, ready to strike at the first sign of hostility.

After a few minutes of “Who is a good pet? You are!” and “Good boy! Now gimme your pawn” Hannibal had to admit that there was no danger in the situation, except for his own mental health. Trying to put an appearance of order in the world again, he got up and started to clean up the food on the floor. He headed downstairs, considering if he should follow his husband’s example and pour brandy in the coffee. It didn't seem an appalling idea anymore.

 --

Hannibal had ventured into the garage to find a container to put that thing’s food in, because surely Will would insist on feeding it and Hannibal would not allow it to touch his silver-lined bowls.

Now he was staring at the new-found object with a deep frown.

A blue plastic dog bowl, covered in white paw prints peaked out from inside some boxes. He had found it by chance, since it was hidden under some plastic plates that Will had insisted on buying. Hannibal, however, had taken one look at them and banished them from the house.

What had seemed like an innocent purchase now acquired new meaning. Hannibal had thought that they were beyond silly, manipulative games when one bought something eye-catching to cover for their real purchase. The Christmas scarf quarrel had been furious enough to discourage further attempts. So Will had purchased the bowl together with the plates, months before Christmas.

Hannibal felt a tinge of disappointment in himself for having been so oblivious.

On the bright side, he found what he was looking for and now he could go back to his territory, the kitchen.

\-- 

Will lay motionless on the floor. His eyes were shut and he was waiting for his occasion, with the scorpion nestled by his side. As soon as Hanbal got bored of sniffing him and turned to the direction of the bed, Will opened his eyes and jumped over his pet, pinning him to the floor. The scorpion yelped in surprise, and then gave a protesting hiss. Laughing, Will rolled away. “I knew I could take you, Hannibal!”

Suddenly Will froze and his expression turned from exultance to deep dread. He jumped on his feet and without a word started to run downstairs.

\--

“Hannibal!!”

Hannibal did not even raise his head. Will’s footsteps thundered down the stairs, announcing his arrival in the kitchen to everyone in a one mile radius.

“What do you need, honey?”

He raised his head from a pomegranate at the last word, just in time to catch Will’s blush. Terms of endearment always had that effect.

Will hesitated at the door, trying to find some appropriate words. Hannibal finished garnishing the omelettes with sugar and the red pomegranate seeds, he then opened the fridge and went to put some turkey leftovers in the bowl on the floor. There was a sharp intake of breath when Will noticed the bowl, but when he spoke it was not what Hannibal was expecting. “He does not eat turkey”

Well, that was offensive. “He will”. Hannibal replied.

Catching the change in his tone, Will winced. He steeled himself and took a step forward. “That’s the thing that you choose to be mad about?”

“I thought you wished to talk, not to offend my cooking”

“I don’t mean it like that, I am just saying that…” Meanwhile Hanbal had entered the kitchen and was heading straight to the bowl. Will hesitated. “...what I mean is…”. The scorpion started to eat voraciously. After two seconds of incredulous silence, Will raised his hands and snapped “He has never eaten it with me!”

“I can imagine. Your turkey is a crime against humanity”. Hannibal reached out tentatively to scratch the back of the scorpion, which hissed softly. Satisfied, he raised himself in time to catch Will’s expression. There was definitely offence there, mixed with incredulity, a lot of guilt and a well-hidden hint of amusement. Hannibal chuckled.

“Well. Would you mind apologizing so we can have breakfast and then go to play fetch?”

\-- 

The portal appeared again at 4:07 pm in the afternoon. Hannibal and Will were sprawled on the sofa watching television, some fancy educational program about African mammals that Hannibal seemed to be fond of, and Hanbal was at their feet. At that point, a flicker of light appeared near to the begonias jar and then expanded slowly to become a full circle.

This time they were able to fully observe the magic, munching on some homemade extravagant chips, and they had to admit that it was nothing special. No smoke, no thundering, just a sudden yellow light coming out of thin air. Instead they were slightly puzzled by the man watching them from the other side.

Will recalled having seen someone who could have been Hannibal’s nordic cousin twice before. He was pretty sure that he was the human form of the scorpion. Hannibal for his part was half asleep and had focused on the immediate concrete danger of the scorpion in his bed. So they were both taken aback by _Will’s_ fancy twin appearing on the other side.

Even more so, when the man’s first words were “Draco! Finally! What are you trying to do, disappearing out of the thin air?

The stranger was completely ignoring the two human figures staring at him, and was talking at the scorpion instead. Actually, it was not an unreasonable choice, since Hanbal had raised himself on his legs and was now hissing and waving his stinger towards the man. Who was not at all impressed.

“Oh, no, don’t try to play the victim now! Was it you who had to ride back to the castle, wake Minnie, and you know how that witch takes being woken up, and then searching frantically for the ingredients for the spell? With all your experience in travelling across the dimensions, one would think that you would be more careful than riding face first into a portal!”

Hannibal, who had straightened himself at the first hiss of Hanbal, started to relax again. Despite everything, the scene was oddly familiar. He took a chip from the bowl and sagged back against Will, whose survival instincts were either very good or completely gone, since he had simply kept eating during the scene.

Meanwhile, Hanbal’s sounds had become more subdued and  resembled a soothing purr.

“...and, yes, the horse is ok, I managed to rein him after you disappeared! I still cannot believe that HE had more brains than you…”

The man’s breathing had become increasingly ragged, as if he was close to tears, and Hanbal must have sensed it, because he was now at an arm’s length away and was purring at full force. The man exited from the portal and hugged him tight, with tears in his eyes but without interrupting his speech.

“...and you haven’t seen Ella’s face when she discovered that you were gone! How could you do something so cruel to her? And the kids! Everyone was freaking out, especially when Minnie’s first attempt with the spell went... wrong…”

At the last word the man’s voice broke, and he was sobbing in earnest. Will squeezed himself nearer to Hannibal, while uncalled memories of cold water and Hannibal’s cold body came to his mind. Hanbal’s tail rolled around the man’s neck, like a scarf, and the contact seemed to center him. Sniffing, the man asked, “By the way, why are you messing around in this shape?”. There was more hissing from Hanbal. “Oh, you can’t turn back? Oh, right, Minnie told me it could have happened… Hold on…”. The man extracts a vial from his pocket, and poured it over the scorpion. There was a blinding green light, and then Hannibal’s nordic cousin appeared in Hanbal’s place. The tail had become an arm draped across the other man’s shoulder, and now Hanbal reached out with his other hand to gently caress his cheek.

Hanbal smiled softly, and then said with fondness. “My dear Char. Thanks for coming to pick me up. It was too late to avoid the portal” At this point Char almost started arguing again, but the other man cut him off “but I knew that you would find me anywhere.”

Char’s protests died in his throat hearing the absolute trust in the man’s voice. He looped his arms across Hanbal’s neck and held on tightly.

Feeling a little embarrassed, Will diverted his eyes, watching Hannibal instead. He had small tears at the corner of his eyes. Will smiled and pulled him closer.

The couple in the middle of the living room in the mean time had sobered up and had stood up. Hanbal cleared his throat. “Will, Hannibal, thank you. Words can’t explain how much I owe you. I was alone and homeless the first time that I came here, and you healed me.” He smiled, then reached for his necklace and offered it in his extended hand. “You have my eternal friendship. If any dangerous beast ever menaces you, just call.”

“You know, Draco, there are better ways of conveying friendship than offering to kill things for them”, Char interrupted in a fond voice. He bowed towards Will and Hannibal. “You have the gratitude of my kingdom. If you are ever in need, just call for us.”

Hannibal had risen to his feet, pulling Will with him, and now accepted the necklace with a graceful bow. “Thank you, your majesties. I am honoured to receive your gifts and your friendship”.

Will spent a moment smiling at his ridiculous manners, before saying. “Hanbal… erm… Draco. Thanks for everything.” He hesitated a moment, at a loss. ‘Thank you for saving my life’ sounded a little overdramatic. “It really meant a lot to me, having you here” he finished lamely, staring at the floor. Suddenly, he felt two strong arms around him. Draco had stepped in and hugged him. Will blinked in surprise, then returned the gesture. After some moments, they separated, both smiling.

“Well, time to go” said Char, roughly pulling one of Draco’s hand and stepping towards the light. “Bye, everyone.” He crossed the portal. Draco had just enough time to turn and wave before being pulled in and disappearing. Will heard him asking “Jealous?” just before the light faded.

Will stared for a while at the empty space that the portal had filled. Hannibal put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s a lot to take in, don’t you think?” Will said in a low voice.

Hannibal answered “Discovering that in every universe we were destined to be together? It is not so surprising.” He looked Will straight into the eyes. “After all, you are the other half of my soul”.

Hannibal was pleased to see Will turning an intense shade of scarlet before he answered “Oh, come on, don’t play it cool now…Don’t think that I didn’t notice your eyes glistening” Will smirked. “And don’t tell me that it’s dust, you keep this place spotless”

“I wouldn’t dare to doubt your observation skills, my love. When we will go to acquire a dog, tomorrow, I will completely rely on you to pick the correct specimen. Even if we end up with a bison”.

There was a little moment of silence when Will processed the information, then he grinned, eyes lit up with happiness. “Oh, shut up” he said, grabbing Hannibal by the tie and proceeding to kiss him senseless.

**Author's Note:**

> BONUS SCENE - Later that evening  
> The difference between Hannibal and Molly, Will mused, was that Hannibal could see him with much more clarity. In other words, he showed a childish glee in calling Will out on his bullshit at every possible occasion. Like now.  
> “Hanbal?”  
> “Perfectly appropriate Egyptian name”  
> “For a dog?”  
> “Ok, maybe I knew that it was a scorpion”  
> “Love makes you blind, Will”  
> “Oh, shut up, Mr. You-look-like-Will-let’s-kill-you-Dimmond”  
> \--  
> Thank you for staying until the end of the series, I hope you enjoyed it! :D


End file.
